"The food you eat is making you sick and the agencies that are providing you with guidelines on what to eat are giving dangerous advice with devastating health consequences. You can change that today."

Breaking bread and beating wheat

By Dr. Davis | March 15, 2012

An anonymous commenter left this post on Amazon:

I wanted to post this review because I am absolutely shocked at how quickly and easily the no-wheat advice worked (which I just did as an experiment that I was SURE would fail). The book isn’t quite a “how to” diet book – but it is instead focused on getting the message of why wheat is bad out there. Here is some of my timeline since reading:

In the first week, my cravings for wheat and sugary foods (particularly chocolate) were diminished.
In 3 weeks, I lost 10 lbs (without working out) that I could not lose in the last 6 months despite diet and extensive exercise. (At least 10-15 miles a week of running).

By week 4, I was sleeping less and had more energy . . . cravings were even further diminished to virtually zero. I am normally a huge fan of Easter candy this time of year – but I just walked by the aisle in CVS unfazed. I have no idea how that happened. I also lost about 15 lbs by now.

On the other side of the coin . . . to “prove” things to myself, I suppose . . . I ate a big piece of pita bread tonight, and I am now paying the price with lethargy and brain fog. Then, I had a massive craving for a Snickers bar hidden away here (which I ate . . . great . . . ) None of this happens when wheat is out of my diet.

I will say that I have had wheat on and off in the last month (when it was really worth it to me personally . . . like a really good Italian restaurant), but then the weight loss stops and the lethargy set in . . . so it’s a trade off. And, I am making this trade off less and less these days.

In the beginning, it’s hard to transition but then it starts becoming obvious how awful wheat can be. The cravings come back too. Suddenly after eating wheat, then I wanted chocolate and ice cream. It’s so bizarre that this happens, but he explains this in the book (e.g., the exorphins and probably other chemicals we don’t even know about in wheat do these things)

I have not had a single GI issue since removing wheat, but I am also feeling that I over-rely on dairy a bit too much now. It’s hard to formulate a great diet – though that might sound silly . . . Unfortunately, I am transitioning out of a 50% wheat diet (yes I was that bad) and it is not that easy. So, the only reason I took off a star is because I wish the book had better tips on what to do. He makes his argument very strong – but there’s a bit of an “uh oh now what” feeling at the end. I’ve been eating eggs, fruits, vegetables, meat, etc… but it seemed to be an awkward transition that had me questioning a lot of things too (are fruits too high glycemic? Is oatmeal okay? Can I occasionally have crackers? etc…)

This book is incredibly important though, in the grand scheme of things and in the American diet. Wheat is SO ubiquitous. Cutting down on it could drastically improve heath (and waist size) of everyone in the country – but “breaking bread” is so integral to our culture. At least the celiacs have started raising awareness of gluten intolerance. I hope more people become aware of the message here.

Spread the word! Everyone thinks I am nuts when I talk about this, but they cannot deny I am a LOT thinner!

Here’s another interesting comment from Wheatbeater (great name!):

This book really is life-changing. I can’t express how much happier I have been since giving up wheat — and it’s only been one week! I am a young female, 129 lbs, and pretty slender, so I didn’t pick this book up to lose weight (although I wouldn’t mind that). I have had terrible allergies my entire life (hayfever, dust, pets) and recently they have gone out of control. I thought it might be diet related so I decided to give this a try.

Here’s what I’ve noticed so far: While my allergies have remained *sigh* I have SIGNIFICANTLY more energy. I have always been pretty lazy, not going to lie, and now I feel like I actually want to get up and do things! I had no idea wheat was killing my energy level. Also, my mind is much clearer. I notice things that I didn’t notice before (e.g., I never realized how much of a slob I really was). Now I keep things clean and don’t just let the house get filthy.

I’ve lost 1.6 lbs this week alone. I have now, out of nowhere, taken an interest in cooking and making creative meals like caprese salad, Parmesan chicken, and wheat free muffins. I now avoid the big chain food store and stay local as much as possible. My depression and anxiety symptoms have almost completely lifted. I walk more, rather than drive. I am more “regular,” but I also attribute that to adding coconut milk to my diet which is a diuretic. It tastes great in coffee!

The only thing that I don’t like about this diet is that it’s a little expensive to follow initially. There is a definite startup $$$ needed to begin and all your old wheat products are now of no use.